Mengsk's Uprising
|prev=Guild Wars |conc=Great War (early portion) |next= |image= |imgsize= |conflict= |campaign= |date=Late 2491—February, 2500 |place=Koprulu Sector |result=*Terran Confederacy abolished *Tarsonis overrun by the zerg *Terran Dominion formed *Raynor's Raiders established |battles= |side1= Sons of Korhal Umojan Protectorate (support) |side2= Terran Confederacy |side3= |side4= |side5= |side6= |commanders1= General Arcturus Mengsk General Edmund Duke Lieutenant Sarah Kerrigan Lieutenant Pollock Rimes Lieutenant Sela Brock Lieutenant Matt Horner Captain Jim Raynor Captain Sharyn Moore Michael Liberty William Warchovsky |commanders2= General Ledbetter General/Colonel Edmund Duke Senator Tamsen Cauley |commanders3= |commanders4= |commanders5= |commanders6= |forces1= |forces2= |forces3= |forces4= |forces5= |forces6= |casual1= |casual2= |casual3= |casual4= |casual5= |casual6= |concattop= }} Mengsk's Uprising was a rebellion against the Terran Confederacy by Arcturus Mengsk and his Sons of Korhal. It overthrew the Terran Confederacy as the dominant terran power, and laid the groundwork for what would become the Terran Dominion. Background :Main article: Rebellion of Korhal The Guild Wars ended in 2489, ending in the Terran Confederacy's dominance over the Kel-Morian Combine. With the skewed peace treaty giving the Confederacy access to a large portion of the Kel-Morian's mining guilds and claims, the Confederacy stood uncontested as the dominant power of the Koprulu Sector. A period of expansionism followed, causing the nearby Umoja and its territories to band together to form the Umojan Protectorate out of fear the Confederacy would begin to claim their territories.Underwood, Peter, Bill Roper, Chris Metzen and Jeffrey Vaughn. StarCraft (Manual). Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment, 1998. Meanwhile, the planet of Korhal IV began to grow discontent with Confederate rule. For years they had been resisting the Confederacy, lead by Senator Angus Mengsk. Angus had backing and support from Umoja, and publicly denounced the Confederacy as a corrupt institution while ensuring Korhal began to operate independent from the Confederacy economically while privately organized attacks against Confederate military holdings on the planet.McNeill, Graham (December 30, 2008). StarCraft: I, Mengsk. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 1416-55083-6. By the end of the Guild Wars, the rebellion had millions of supporters. Angus declared Korhal an independent nation from the Confederacy. In response, the Confederacy sent a force to declare martial law on the planet, but the population rose up en masse to throw off their supposed rulers. In response, the Confederacy sent a ghost team, lead by Sarah Kerrigan, to kill Angus Mengsk. They were successful. This agitated matters further, and the rebellion was taken over by Angus's son Arcturus Mengsk, who swore revenge against the Confederacy and began striking against their bases and factories. Hoping to settle the matter once and for all, the Confederacy sent a salvo of a thousand Apocalypse-class nuclear missiles that devastated the planet of Korhal, turning it into nothing more than a smoldering desert. The survivors of the rebellion, united as never before under Arcturus, named themselves the Sons of Korhal, and began a campaign to destroy the Confederacy. Open Rebellion Early Actions With the outrage of the destruction of Korhal, the Sons of Korhal saw a flood of recruits, and backing from their allies in the Umojan Protectorate.Blizzard Entertainment. 2010-07-24. Koprulu Sector Systems: Korhal. Blizzard Entertainment. Accessed 2010-07-24. Mengsk led the rebellion from the captured Confederate battlecruiser he renamed the Hyperion. Using ruthless hit and run tactics, the Sons of Korhal began to make ground against the Confederacy, winning victory after victory and confounding Confederate enforcement agents. The rebellion was supported by dissenting members of the Confederacy, namely terrans such as Lieutenant Colonel Horace Warfield.Blizzard Entertainment. 2010-11-12. Cast of Characters: Horace Warfield. Blizzard Entertainment. Accessed 2010-11-13. The Sons of Korhal also made liberal use of mercenaries, but the Confederacy began to track and exterminate groups that employed by the rebel movement.Blizzard Entertainment. 2010-11-12. Cast of Characters: Graven Hill. Blizzard Entertainment. Accessed 2010-11-13. Ghosts of Vengeance With a large amount of support, inside sources in the Confederacy, and a large army at his command, the Sons of Korhal were able to deal decisive strikes against the Confederacy, and able to match their armies in direct conflict. With his revolution established, Mengsk turned to a personal matter; vengeance against the ghost agents who had assassinated his family. He tracked one to Vyctor 5, in a base called the Fujita Facility. In a decisive strike, the Sons of Korhal overwhelmed the base and retrieved a ghost stored within, named Sarah Kerrigan. Kerrigan was Mengsk's target, but instead of enacting vengeance against her, he showed mercy, nursing her back to health and attempting to undo the blocks on her memory. Inside the facility, the Sons of Korhal discovered the Confederates working with strange xenomorphs in tandem with the ghosts. These were destroyed. With Kerrigan in toe, Mengsk began to make plans to assault the Ghost Academy on Tarsonis. However, a mole in their ranks lead Colonel Edmund Duke of Alpha Squadron to them. The Sons of Korhal were able to escape his assault, but not before they planted a ghost agent on their ship. Kerrigan slew the ghost before it could do too much damage. With all preparations made, the Sons of Korhal moved to raid Tarsonis. Kerrigan was ordered to help with the attack, and was told one of the officers that tortured her in her captivity, Major Rumm, was in the facility. Kerrigan was also told to capture a specific ghost. Due to the intervention of Rimes, the mole, the attack was tipped off and heavy Sons of Korhal casualties were inflicted, but Kerrigan was able to kill Rumm, capture the ghost and destroy the facility. While the Confederate media tried to cover up the attack, the Sons of Korhal announced their role, and gave a statement outlining their goals. The resulting backlash caused mass protests in universities throughout the Tarsonis. Mengsk killed the captured ghost, revealing his role in his parent's assassination, and revealing Kerrigan's role as well. However, Mengsk stated she would be a useful asset, and she agreed to stay on with his revolution.Neilson, Micky (December 18, 2000). StarCraft: Uprising. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0743-41898-0 (eBook). By 2497, the Sons of Korhal continued to grow in strength, and all Confederate attempts to quell the uprising were unsuccessful.McNeill, Graham (December 30, 2008). StarCraft: I, Mengsk. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 1416-55083-6. In 2499, a Sons of Korhal base was discovered on Chau Sara, and the local Confederate militia were tasked with destroying it. With the aid of soldiers from the Cerberus Program, the Sons of Korhal base was destroyed.StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Precursor bonus campaign, mission 1: "Strongarm" (in English). 1998-09-03. Map Archives: Precursor Campaign. The Great War In 2499, the colony of Chau Sara was purified by an aliens species known as the protoss, leading the Confederacy into a state of panic. In addition, research on the xenomorphs, named the zerg, had lead the Confederacy to test the creatures against Fringe World colonies. A three-way war broke out between the species, known a the Great War. Mengsk would seize the opportunity to unite the fearful people of the Koprulu sector against the Confederacy. Mar Sara In 2499, the sister colony of Chau Sara, Mar Sara, was attacked by the zerg, but the Confederate forces in the area refused to aid the colonists. Desperate, a magistrate of the colony hailed for aid, and Mengsk responded, sending dropships to evacuate the colonists. The evacuation was successful, and the Sons of Korhal recruited the magistrateBlizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Desperate Alliance (in English). 1998. as well as famous reported Michael Liberty.Grubb, Jeff (February 27, 2001). StarCraft: Liberty's Crusade. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0671-04148-9. Unbeknownst to them, a Sons of Korhal agent named Merdith Jernic planted a mysterious device known as a psi-emitter on the planet. The 417th Confederate Marine Corps Platoon of the Confederacy captured her and the emitter, but seeing their situation as hopeless used the emitter to lure the zerg to them and away from the evacuation ships. The platoon was wiped out, but the colonists were given the time they needed to escape.Hickman, Tracy (May 21, 2002). StarCraft: Speed of Darkness. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0671-04150-2. The Sons of Korhal then attacked the Confederate prison ship Merrimack, freeing Marshal Jim Raynor. Raynor, abhorred with the crimes of the Confederacy and their refusal to act, joined the Sons of Korhal. Before they left, Mengsk received information from Warfield regarding a secret facility known as the Jacobs Installation. Jim Raynor and a team known as Raynor's Rangers raided the facility, discovering Confederate experiments with the zerg, as well as a large amount of data they assumed were weapons designs. The Sons of Korhal then left the planet, just as the protoss Koprulu Expeditionary Force arrived under Executor Tassadar. Tassadar purified the planet, ending the zerg threat there.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: The Jacobs Installation (in English). 1998. Sometime after the fall of Mar Sara, the Sons of Korhal engaged the Confederate fleet of General Edmund Duke in the Battle of Brontes.Golden, Christie (November 27, 2007). StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga #2: Shadow Hunters. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0-7434-7126-8. Flight to Antiga Pulling back from Mar Sara, Arcturus Mengsk believed that their efforts had weakened the Confederacy's grip on the fringe worlds. As such, the Sons of Korhal moved on Antiga Prime, believing they could stir up the people there to revolt against the Confederacy. Confederate Alpha Squadron forces under now General Edmund Duke were deployed there, however, with the intention of keeping the peace. Jim Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan raided a Confederate outpost there, killing the commanding officer and sparking the Antigan people to fight back against the Confederacy. General Duke organized a counterattack against them, but the combined Sons of Korhal and Antigan force ended his counterattack.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Revolution (in English). 1998. During the attack, the zerg came to the Antiga system, and assaulted the Alpha Squadron fleet. General Duke's ship Norad II was downed in the attack and overwhelmed by zerg. Duke sent a distress signal, and much to the surprise of Raynor and Kerrigan, Mengsk ordered a force to rescue him and his men. Raynor begrudgingly sent a force to Duke's nearby base, and the combined forces broke through the zerg blockade and rescued Duke. Mengsk gave Duke an offer, return to the Confederacy and lose, or join the Sons of Korhal and save humanity against the zerg while gaining a position in Mengsk's cabinet. Duke accepted Mengsk's offer, and joined the Sons of Korhal.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Norad II (in English). 1998. With Confederate colonies in open revolt all over the sector, and a war on all fronts from two alien races, the Confederacy sent their full might to bear against the Sons of Korhal on Antiga Prime. However, it was then Mengsk decrypted the weapon's disc, discovering how to construct the psi-emitters the Confederacy were using to lure zerg to fringe worlds. Mengsk devised a plan to plant one in the center of the Confederate position, and use the chaos the zerg's attack to escape the planet. Kerrigan expressed concerns with the plan, but Mengsk stated that she could not let her past cloud her judgment, and ordered her to carry out her orders. Kerrigan agreed, and lead the attack, planting the emitter. The zerg descended on the Confederates, overwhelming them and giving the Sons of Korhal time to escape.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: The Trump Card (in English). 1998. The zerg assault on the planet began to inflict heavy civilian casualties as well as Confederate. Jim Raynor devised a plan to attack the central zerg hive cluster, forcing the zerg to pull back to defend it and giving the civilians time to evacuate. Mengsk agreed, and he and General Duke attacked the central hive. However, the zerg that flooded back were more than they expected, and their defenses were hammered. The Sons of Korhal were saved by the arrival of Executor Tassadar of the Protoss Empire, who offered his aid. Together, the two destroyed the zerg hive in the area, and the Sons of Korhal were allowed to escape.Gradius. 2008-01-18. Starcraft Bonus Missions(+2 never seen!). Blizzforums. Accessed 2008-01-18. As the Sons of Korhal evacuated, the protoss purified the planet of Antiga Prime, eliminating the zerg threat once again. Pushing Toward Tarsonis During, or shortly after the fighting on Antiga Prime,2009-06-10. StarCraft # 1 - Simon Furman Interview. Blizzplanet. Accessed 2009-06-10 the Sons of Korhal were involved in the Battle of Atticus Minor. The Sons of Korhal wrested the planet away from Confederate control, but had to deal with a zerg infestation afterwards. The War Pigs, a Confederate unit, made an assassination attempt on Arcturus Mengsk during the battle, but failed and withdrew.Giffen, Keith and Simon Furman (w), Federico Dallocchio (p, i), Milen Parvanov (col). "StarCraft: Issue 1" StarCraft 1 (1) (May 27, 2009) DC Comics (Wildstorm). The Sons of Korhal struck at the moon of the gas giant G-2275, which held upgraded goliath walkers. Lieutenant Kerrigan and Captain Raynor lead the assault, destroying the facility. The attack not only gave the rebels upgraded goliaths, but destroyed a major Confederate technological hub and lost the Confederacy the designs for those goliaths. The Sons of Korhal also struck a science facility on Orna III with the intention of freeing the tortured test subjects inside and freeing the scientists sympathetic to their case. The Cormorant dropped off Captain Raynor and Lieutenant Kerrigan, who entered disguised as a ghost agent and captured prisoner. They then raided the base, gaining access to the prisoners and scientists. They then set up demolition charges, destroying the base.Golden, Christie (November 6, 2012). StarCraft II: Flashpoint. Simon & Schuster (Gallery Books). ISBN 978-1451-65962-7. The Fall of Tarsonis With the Confederacy weakened by the war and the Sons of Korhal more powerful then ever before, Mengsk moved his forces for the final assault on the Confederate capitol world of Tarsonis. General Edmund Duke and his Alpha Squadron forces attacked the outlying space platformed manned by Delta Squadron and Omega Squadron.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: The Big Push (in English). 1998. Meanwhile, Captain Raynor, Lieutenant Kerrigan and Michael Liberty along with a contingent of Sons of Korhal forces landed on the planet, fighting Confederate forces in Tarsonis City. During the battle, General Duke planted a cluster of psi-emitters on Mensgsk's orders, activating them in spite of Raynor, Kerrigan and Liberty's protests. The zerg swarmed Tarsonis en masse, killing billions of Confederates, civilians and rebels alive. As they had before, the Koprulu Expeditionary Force of the Protoss Empire arrived under Executor Tassadar, but instead of purifying the world, Tassadar decided to deploy ground forces to spare the terrans from the flame. Mengsk however saw this as giving the Confederacy the possibility of escape, and sent Kerrigan under the Magistrate to New Gettysburg in order to stop the pacify the protoss while not engaging the zerg. Raynor protested, but Kerrigan continued with her mission. Kerrigan and her Sons of Korhal contingent successfully destroyed the protoss bases in the area, neutralizing them. However, with the protoss gone a wave of zerg overwhelmed their position. Kerrigan requested evacuation, but Mengsk ordered his forces to disengage, leaving her and her forces to the mercy of the zerg. Kerrigan was taken by the zerg, but not killed, rather put into a chrysalis to be infested.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: New Gettysburg (in English). 1998. With the protoss neutralized the Confederacy stranded on the surface, the Sons of Korhal were victorious over their enemies. However, the brutal destruction of billions on Tarsonis did not sit well with many in the Sons of Korhal. Raynor defied orders, and went to the planet's surface looking for Kerrigan and any stranded terrans he could rally. While he did muster a small crew, he was unable to find any sign of Kerrigan. Raynor, Liberty, the Magistrate and a young Matt Horner and Raynor's Rangers defected that day, becoming Raynor's Raiders. They attempted to escape from the Sons of Korhal fleet, but General Duke activated Tarsonis's defensive Ion cannon. The Raiders fought through the Sons of Korhal forces, destroying the Ion cannon and breaking from Tarsonis's orbit.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: The Hammer Falls (in English). 1998. On the surface, Confederate forces tried for one final stand against the zerg, but were destroyed.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Among the Ruins (in English). 1998. Aftermath With the Confederacy destroyed, Mengsk returned to Korhal IV and made a speech to the terran planets of the Koprulu sector. There, he called for the need of all terrans to unite against the protoss and zerg, and that only through unity under his rule could the terrans hope to survive the war. The terran colonies united under him, and from them came the Terran Dominion under the new Emperor Arcturus Mengsk.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Cinematic: The Inauguration. (in English). 1998. Raynor's Raiders swore revenge against Mengsk for their actions on Tarsonis, and stole the Sons of Korhal flagship Hyperion. Michael Liberty and the Magistrate separated from the group, deciding to go their own way. While they wandered directionless in the months following their formation, they would continue to fight against Mengsk's regime for years to come.Rosenberg, Aaron (May 23, 2006). StarCraft: Queen of Blades. Simon & Schuster (Pocket Star). ISBN 978-0-7434-7133-6. Kerrigan would be infested by the zerg, and become a powerful force within the Zerg Swarm, and one that would constantly serve as a threat to Mengsk's regime and the safety of Dominion.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft. Vivendi Games. Mission: Agent of the Swarm (in English). 1998. The Dominion would weather the Great War, but Confederate remnants would continue to strike against them. In the aftermath, the Confederate Resistance Forces were formed with the goal of defying the Dominion and its emperor. When the United Earth Directorate arrived to reclaim the sector, the Confederates joined with them, attempting to assassinate Mengsk on Umoja. This was unsuccessful, and though the UED would temporarily conquer the Dominion, Mengsk and his Dominion would reform and continue to exist well after the Brood War. Even with the destruction of the resistance forces, Confederate holdouts would persist. In 2501 a group of Old Family children retreated to the planet Shi, where Confederate holdouts attempted to hide them. The Dominion found them however, and released a zerg drone on the planet, using the zerg to overwhelm the Confederates. However, they were rescued by a group of ghost trainees and a Dominion battlecruiser that had been passing by. Mengsk ordered the Old Family children executed and the ghost trainees were given memory wipes.Gerrold, David (w), Fernando Heinz Furukawa (p, i). StarCraft: Ghost Academy: Volume 3 (paperback binding). Tokyopop, March 8, 2011. ISBN 978-1427-81614-6. Confederate research bases would continue to persist until even after the end of the Great War.2000-10-27. StarCraft: Brood War. Vivendi Games. Mission: Deception (in English). Map Archives: Deception. Arcturus Mengsk's rule would continue well into 2505, when a coalition of Raynor's Raiders, Arcturus Mengsk's son Valerian Mengsk and the zerg under Sarah Kerrigan would finally kill him. The Dominion would persist however, as Valerian would take over his position as Emperor.Blizzard Entertainment. StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. (Activision Blizzard). PC. Mission: Heart of the Swarm, The Reckoning (in English). 2013-03-12. References Category:Wars